WOMEN’S BASKETBALL Carroll’s women’s basketball had a historic 2023-24 season, winning a program-record 23 games with a 23-5 overall record and a 14-2 mark in the CCIW, which included a pair of nine-game winning streaks. That helped the Pioneers win the CCIW regular season championship for the first time in program history, marking the program’s first conference championship since winning the Midwest Conference in 2006. For the first time in program history, they won the CCIW Tournament and were ranked 13th in the D3hoops.com Top 25 poll for the final seven weeks of the season, which marks the program’s longest such streak. That helped them earn hosting rights for the NCAA Division-III Tournament for the first time since the mid-1980s. Junior guard Olivia Rangel was a force for the Pioneers this season, as she was one of two unanimous First Team All-Conference selections. She became just the 17th player in program history to score 1,000 career points, reaching that milestone midway through the year, currently sitting in eighth place all-time with 1,148 career points. Also a First Team AllRegion and Fifth Team All-America selection, Rangel finished the season ranking third in the CCIW in scoring (18.5 ppg), which also ranked 54th in Division III. Carroll won both games they played against Millikin, with Millikin being ranked in the top 15 in the country each time the Pioneers earned the win. That includes a 101-98 overtime thriller against the Big Blue in front of frenzied fans at Van Male. Rangel also received a selection on the CSC Academic All-America team, becoming the 17th Pioneer to earn that honor, while becoming just the third Carroll women’s basketball player to achieve the feat. Carroll finished the season ranking second in all of Division-III in 3-point shooting (.378), while ranking third in scoring (79.9 ppg), fifth in assists (18.5 apg), third in field goal percentage (.479) and 21st in scoring margin (+17.2 ppg). Individually, sophomore Emilie Wizner led all of Division-III in 3-point shooting (.486), while Rangel finished the season ranked 23rd in the nation in assists (4.8 apg) and 26th in total points (518). As a team, Carroll set several school records this season. In addition to the most wins in program history, the Pioneers set new marks for single-season points (2,236), scoring average (79.9 ppg), scoring margin (+17.2), assists (519), field goal percentage (.479) and defensive rebounds (789) Joining Rangel on the All-Conference team were sophomores Natalie Gricius and Wizner, who earned First and Second Team honors, respectively. Gricius also joined Rangel on the All-Region squad, receiving Second Team recognition. Rangel and fellow junior Chloe Halverson earned Academic All-District honors, while Halverson also won the CCIW’s prestigious Elite 26 Award, given to the studentathlete who excels academically and athletically at the conference level in each of the CCIW’s 26 sponsored sports. MEN’S BASKETBALL Carroll’s men’s basketball team progressed well throughout this season, finishing with an overall record of 14-12 and 7-9 in the CCIW, clinching a spot in the conference tournament for the first time since the 2016-17 season. The Pioneers defeated the second and third best team in the conference. The Pioneers finished the season ranking eighth in all of Division-III in 3-point percentage defense (.285). They also ranked 59th in the nation and second in the conference with 15.6 free throws made per game. Junior Kobe Simpson earned the team’s lone All-Conference nod, while seniors Justin Steinike and Tyler Miller each earned a spot on the CSC Academic All-District team. MEN’S AND WOMEN’S SWIMMING & DIVING The College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) proudly announced the selection of the Scholar AllAmerican Team for the fall 2023 semester, with both Carroll’s men’s and women’s swim team earning a spot on the list, coached by Guy Gniotczynski. The Pioneer men’s team, consisting of nine members, finished the fall semester with a Grade Point Average (GPA) of 3.20, while the 17-person Carroll women’s swim team boasted a GPA of 3.18. Josie Peterson set two school records this season, one in the 100 freestyle with a time of 53.08, and another in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:58.17. She won the conference championship in the 50 freestyle for the second consecutive season, while earning AllConference honors in the 50 and 100. Edward McConnaha also set a school record for the men’s team, breaking Carroll’s mark in the 100 IM with a time of 55.67. Anina Lee, Chopper Ceshker, Nicole Johnson and Peterson each earned a spot on the CSC Academic All-District team. WOMEN’S BOWLING Carroll’s women’s bowling team qualified for the CCIW Tournament this season as the number four seed. Freshman Ava Butt was named Second Team All-Conference, making her the second student-athlete to earn that distinction in the four year history of the program. Fellow freshman Kelsey Aviles earned the program’s first-ever CCIW Student-Athlete of the Week award in the final week of the regular season. MEN’S AND WOMEN’S TRACK & FIELD Vanessa Uitenbroek earned the CCIW Outdoor Performer of the Meet award for women’s field at the 2024 CCIW Outdoor Championships. In that meet, Uitenbroek won the discus with a new conference-record throw of 50.88m. In addition to that school record, Uitenbroek set a school record in the shot put with a toss of 14.83m, which was good for second place in that event. She qualified for Outdoor Nationals in three different events (shot put, discus, hammer), earning First Team All-American honors in the shot put for the third consecutive season with a third-place finish. She also earned Second Team All-American honors in the hammer throw, bringing her career AllAmerican total to six. She was named North Region Women’s Field Athlete of the Year at the conclusion of the season, while earning AllRegion honors in both the discus and shot put. Other women qualifying for outdoor nationals were Maria Falk (shot put) and Cate Gudaitis (discus). Carroll’s other All-Conference performers this season included Rebekah Buboltz (800 meters), Falk (shot put and weight throw), and Grace Kelly (weight throw) during the indoor season, while the team’s outdoor AllConference performers were Gudaitis (discus), Buboltz (800 meters), Falk (shot put and hammer throw) and Grace Tinder (pole vault). On the men’s side, grad students Steven Hermsen and Jimmy Himkley each qualified for outdoor Nationals, with Hermsen doing so in the discus and shot put and Hinkley doing the honors in the hammer throw. Both student-athletes earned All-American status. Hermsen, who was vying to become the firstever person to become a four-time National Champion in the discus, finished second in the event, marking the seventh career AllAmerican performance of his storied career. Hinkley earned his first career All-American performance in the hammer, finishing eighth in the event. Both also earned All-Region honors in those respective events. In the CCIW Outdoor Championships, Nathan Raatz earned All-Conference honors with a second-place finish in the 800 meters, while Hermsen earned All-Conference honors in both the discus and shot put. Peter Marra, Will Campbell and Ethan Zilsch also earned AllConference honors in the 110 hurdles, shot put and high jump, respectively. Hinkley won the outdoor hammer throw to earn All-Conference honors, while Hermsen and Spencer Kirsteatter also earned All-Conference in the hammer throw and 10K, respectively. Hinkley and Campbell also each earned All-Conference honors in the indoor weight throw. Raatz and Brady Reusser earned All-Conference recognition in the indoor 800 and shot put, respectively. ATHLETICS ROUND UP FOREMOST 16 carrollu.edu
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